Receptacle for cultivating and preserving flowers.



No. 665,502. Patented 1an. s, |9o|. L Y A. B. nosas. 1

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SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 665,502, dated January8, 1901. Application filed November 18, 189Sl. Serial No. 737,449. (Nomodelf.

T0 01.27/ whom, it may concer-n,.- n

Be it known that I, ALDEN B. BOGGS, acitizen of the United States,residing at Covington, in the county of Miami and State of Ohio, haveinvented certain new and useful Improvements in Receptacles forCultivating and Preserving Flowers; and I do hereby declare thefollowing to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention,such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains tomake and use the same, reference being had to the accompanying drawings,and to the characters of reference marked thereon, which form a part ofthis specification.

My invention relates to a receptacle for cultivating and preservingiiowers, and my device may be employed in privateas well as any class ofpublic grounds, although it is more especially adapted and designed foruse in cemeteries, and is intended to be set into the earth (so as tocome flush or level with the top surface thereof) and to be placeddirectly over the grave containing the casket and rest on top of theearth which has just been placed on said casket; and it consists incertain combinations of novel features of construction andtorm, as Willbe morefully described hereinafter, and pointed out in the subjoinedclaims, in accordance with the statutes in such cases made and providedtherefor.

Referring to the accompanying drawings, illustrating my invention, andin which like letters and numerals of Areference refer to correspondingparts throughout the several views, Figure 1 is a general view inperspective of my invention, showing it in operative position and itspractical application when; employed in a cemetery. Fig. 2 is a planview of the device before it is filled with the earth composing theiioWer-bed and showing the intermediate supporting-floor for said bed,and Fig. 3 is a central longitudinal Vertical sectional view of same.Fig. 4 is a vertical cross-sectional view looking toward the foot andshowing slight changes inthe form of the upper chamber and in the meansfor absorbing and distributing the water and moisture.

In describing my invention in detail,and having reference to the variousparts by means of the letters and numerals of reference ings, otindicates the entire receptacle, which is preferably constructed out ofcement or any suitable material and formed with a bottom or base portionb of suitable thickness; (See Figs. 3 and 4.) c is a shoulder formed onthe inside of said receptacle approximately midway its depth and extendsentirely around the inside to receive and support floor-sections ol of afloor, preferably constructed of wood, which thus divides saidreceptacle into an upper chamber or compartment e, adapted to receivethe bed of earth in which the 'low` ers are grown and cultivated, and alower compartment or basin f, which receives and holds the supply ofwater, so that the flowers are always automatically nurtured by means asAwill be more fully described hereinafter. The walls g of uppercompartment e are designed to be of sufficient width at their tops todivide or separate the bed of earth in which are the growing iiowers orlike vegetation from the surrounding grass or weeds, thus preventingtheirintermingling thereby choking up and destroying said fiowers, andsaid walls may be vertical or slightly inclined, as desired, entirelyaround their sides and ends, While'their top is slight-ly inclined ordished inward, as at o, so as to catch all moisture or dews, as shown inFigs. 3 and 4, excepting at the front end, as shown at fm, (see Figs. 1and 2,) where said wall is considerably wider and is level on its top,(instead of dished,) so as to support a vase, piece of Statuary, or amarker, as shown iu Fig. l; but the walls h of lower compartment orwater-basin fare intended and designed to be slightly inclined fromshoulder c at their top to the bottom or base h of said receptacleentirely around their sides and ends, so that during a wet season thesuperfluous amount of water caused by heavy rains will gradually pass orsoak through the bed of earth in said upper chamber and Eind its wayalong the inclined walls into said water-basin, as well as flow intosaid Water-basin through inlet or supply pipe 6, which passes throughone of the oorsections d nearest to the foot of said receptacle, andacts not alone as a supply-pipe by which water may be introduced intothe water-basin, but said pipe 6 has its end screwthreaded at 7, so asto be firmly held and su pemployed in the several views of the drawlported in said door-section, and also acts as IOO a vent for the escapeof air from said waterbasin. The bottom or base portion bis slightlyinclined longitudinally in said water-basin from head of the receptacleto its foot, so as to assist in permitting the water after getting towithin a short space or Vdistance of iloorsections d, which compose saidwooden loor, t-o pass down and out through outlet or overflow pipe S andbe absorbed and taken up by the surrounding earth first placed on topot' the burial-casket. Said overflow-pipe Sis located near the foot ofthe receptacle and passes up through a sleeve i in bottom b to within ashort distance of floor-sections d of the wooden floor and is detachablyheld in position by reason of its screw-threaded portion 9 engaging thescrew-threads of sleeve t', (which may be formed by a short section ofpipe,) set in bottom portion b. The lower end of said overflow-pipeextends a sufiicient distance in the earth below the receptacle, asshown in Fig. 3, to carry off the superfluous water.

Floor-sections d are suitably formed with recesses, so that when laidthey will form suitable openings, as at K, for the reception of suitableabsorbent material Z to pass down therethrough and rest on the bottom orbase l) in the water in water-basin f, and thus take up andautomatically supply the earth in the flower-bed and feed and nourishthe flowers; but where there is a superfluous amount of water in theflower-bed, as in the case of heavy rains, said absorbent material willact as a conductor for the water and carry it downward and distribute itin said water-basin, thus serving a twofold purpose. In the instanceshown in Figs. 2'and 3 of the drawings I have shown this absorbentmaterial Z to consist of porous bricks, and in the instance shown inFig. et I have shown said absorbent material to consist of a spongesupported and retained in position by an ordinary coil-springn, disposedbetween the floorscctions and bottom of water-basin.

It will be obvious without further description that it will seldom benecessary to fill the water-basin by introducing water through thesupply-pipe, and lowers can be kept for almost an indefinite period, andfor this reason it is particularly applicable to cemetery use.

Having now described my receptacle forcultivating and preservingflowers, what I claim as my invention, and desire to secure by LettersPatent, is

1. A receptacle for growing flowers, consisting of an upper com partmente; a lower compartment f; ashonlder c; the floor ofthe upper compartmentresting upon said shoulder; means for conveying the water from onecompartment to the other; a supply-pipe G; an outlet or overflow pipe 8;and a head-wall suitably formed so as to support an urn, or a marker orlike device; substantially as and for the purpose described.

2. A receptacle for cultivating flowers, having the compartment e; thecompartment f; the shoulder '0,' the Hoor or platform; the absorbentmaterial, adapted to convey water from one compartment to the other; theretaining-spring n for supporting and retaining said absorbent materialin position; the inlet or supply pipe 6; the outlet or overflow pipe 8;and the head-rest adapted to support a piece of statuary, a marker orlike device, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have affixed my signature in presence of twowitnesses.

ALDEN B. BOGGS.

Witnesses:

M. W. ALBERY, LILLIE B. CRoF'r.

